Street or station indicator



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

M. ANTHONY. STREET OR STATION INDICATOR.

No. 418,347. Patented 1300.31, 18-89.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. M. ANTHONY.

STREET 0R STATION INDICATOR. I No. 418,347. Patented Dec. 31, 1889.

n. PETERS. PhMo-Lllhugraphor. Washingian, n c;

UNITED STATES MARK ANTHONY, OF SAN PATENT OFFICE.

FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

STREET OR STATION lND-lCATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 418,347, dated December31, 1889.

Application filed April 3, 1889. Serial No. 305,829. (No model.) i

To alt whom it may concern:

Be 1t known that I, MARK ANTHONY, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State ofCalifornia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Streetand Station Indicators; and I do declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to lettersof reference marked phereon, which form a part of this specificaion.

Figure l of the drawings is a representation of the invention inperspective. Fig. 2 is a front view. Fig. 3 is a vertical transversesection, and Fig. 4 is a detail view.

This invention has relation to street and station indicators; and itconsists in the construction and novel combination of devices, all ashereinafter set forth, and pointed out in the appended claims.

The object of the invention is to provide an indicator for streets andstations which will also serve for advertising purposes, and which,while easily constructed, will be durable and easy of operation.

In the accompanying drawings, the letter A designates the box or casing,having an opening in front through which the indicatorleaves fall duringthe operation of the device in hanging position.

B designates a book of indicator-leaves C, which are hinged to the backportion, which is provided with an extension or lug a at each end toengage the holding attachments D ofthe casing. The free edges of theindicator-leaves are notched, as indicated at b, to correspond with theposition of the lugs c of the reciprocating dropper-slide E, so

that when said lugs are opposite the notches of a leaf it, beingunsupported, will fall; but when the lugs are in position away from saidnotches their engagement with the edge por tion of the leafwill serve tohold it up or in the box. The reciprocating slide is located neartheedges of the leaves, so that it will lower edge are opposite the notchesof the leaves; and the notches of alternate leaves are differentlylocated to correspond with the different positions of the slide-lugs atthe end of the movements of the slide, so that when the movement of theslide in one direction is terminated its lugs will be opposite thenotches of a leaf, allowing the latter to fall, but holding up the nextleafuntil the end of its reverse movement, when its lugs, being oppositenotches of this leaf, allow it to fall, while holding up the succeedingleaf, and so on throughout the series of leaves in the book. This bookis so constructed that each leaf from its hinged portion to its notchededge is shorter than the preceding leaf, the stubs B of the back portionbeing correspondingly longer each than the preceding stub by thethickness of a leaf, the object being to extend the hinge of each leaf alittle beyond that of the preceding leaf, so that when it falls it willlie flat against the leaf which has fallen before. The hook is removablefrom the casing, and it maybe easily appreciated that instead of usingnotched leaves to operate with a slide having lugs a notched slide maybe employed, the leaves of the book having corresponding lugs.

The holding attachments D have bearings c, with which the extension-lugsa of the back or binding of the book engage. These bearings haveopenings at f, so that the lugs a can pass out freely when the book isbeing removed from the casing. The dropper-slide E, although havingreciprocating motion. is also pivoted, so that it can be swung backwarda little, while it cannot swing forward from the vertical plane. Theobject of this is to allow the indicator-leaves of the book after theyhave fallen to hanging position to be readily raised up into the caseagain, this being usually accomplished by the replacer F, which consistsof a bail device on a shaft g, having a pulley G at its end, providedwith a cord hfwhich extends down below the bottom of the car, guided bysuitable sheaves, and is connected to a lover I, having its pivot asupported in any suitable way upon and under the car-body. hen saidlever is moved by coming in contact with an inclined way or guide on thetrack, the cord is pulled and the wheel, with its shaft and hail device,turned back, carrying with it the leaves into the case. The leavesreadily'pass the lugs of the swinging dropper-slide, which, however,when said leaves have passed back into the case, swings forward, holdingthem in raised position. After the replacer-lever I leaves the inclinedtrack-guide it assumes its normal hanging position and the bail deviceof the replacer falls. The dropper-slide is reciprocated by means of anautomatic device at each street or station. This may consist of aninclined guide or projection on the track way adapted to move a rod orslide passing down through the bottom of the car and connected by meansof a bell-crank to a reciprocating thrust-bar J, having a short rack Kthereon, said rack being of just sufficient length to turn the rockinggear K a half-revolution and having at each end of the rack a smoothportion Z, adapted to engage the locking-planes m on the gear betweenits arcs of teeth, as shown. \Vhen the smooth portion Z is in engagementwith the lockingplane of the gear-wheel, the latter cannot turn, so thatafter each movement of the rack the gear is held in fixed position untilthe rack comes into engagement again. It is apparent, therefore, thatthe extent of movement of the thrust-bar may be raised withoutinterfering with the exact operation of the rack and gear.

L indicates an intermittently-rotating disk having notches diametricallyopposite to each other 011 its periphery and adapted to engage aspring-pawl N and hold the disk still after each half-revolution. Thedisk is provided with a crank-pin p, on which is pivoted the pitman-rodr, which is connected to an arm of the angle-lever s, which engages thedropperslide. The disk is also provided on its inner face with a pivotedspring-pawl n, which en: gages alternately the diametrically-oppositeratchet-teeth tof the gear. A long stop-tooth n is provided on the gearK, adapted to engage a fixed stud 1 When the thrust-bar is moved upward,its rack, coming into engagement with the gear K, turns it ahalf-revolution in one direction, and at the same time one of theratchet-teeth of said gear, engaging the inner pawl 92 of the revolvingdisk L,

' causes the latter to turn a half-revolution, and through its crank-pinand pitman to operate the dropper-slidein one direction, bringingitslugs opposite the notches of the teeth of the leaf, so thatthe latterwillfall. On the return or downward movement of the thrustbar J,however, although the gear K is turned backward a half-revolution, itsratchet-tooth t slides under the pawl 71 of the crank-disk L, so thatthe latter is held stationary by the spring-pawl N and there is nomovement of the dropper-slide. On the next upward movement of thethrust-bar the rack causes the gear K to turn forward again, and by theengagement of its other ratchet-tooth with the pawl n of the disk L toturn the latter andropped position.

other half-revolution, thereby moving the dropper-slide in the reversedirection,bringing its lugs opposite the notches of the next leaf of theindicator-book.

The names of the stations or of the streets are on the front faces ofthe leaves when in Advertising matter can be placed below thestation-names, so as to be displayed when the leaves fall.

Having described this invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, 1s

1. In a street-car or station indicator, the combination, with thereciprocating dropperslide applied to a box or casing and pivoted toswing backward and provided with lugs on its lower edge, of aprojectionon the trackway, a rod or slide extending through the car-bottom andengaging said projection or guide, a bell-crank, a rack thrust-bar, arocking gear, an intermittently-rotating notched disk, a pitman, and anangle-lever, all coacting to actuate the dropper-slide, substantially asset forth.

2. In a street or station indicator for cars,

the combination, with a reciprocating dropper-slide, of a reciprocatingrack thrust-bar, a rocking gear K, having diametrically-opposit-eratchet-teeth, an intermittently-revolvling crank-disk having a pawlengaging said ,teeth, a spring-pawl engaging notches of said crank-disk,and devices connecting the crankdisk to the dropper-slide, and mechanismfor ;operating said dropper-slide, substantially as =specified. 3. In astreet orstation indicator for cars, the combination, with a pivotedreciprocating g-dropper-slide and mechanism to move the same, of thehinged indicator-leaves engaging said dropper-slide provided withdisengaging devices on their edges, substantially as specified.

4E. Ina street or station indicator for cars,

,the indicator-book having its leaves notched in their free edges andprovided with hinges raised a little in succession from the front to therear leaf of the book, and mechanism to effect the dropping of saidleaves, substantially as specified. I 5. In a street or stationindicator for cars, the combination, with the open box or case and itsholding attachments having openings, of the removable indicator-bookhaving its leaves hinged to a bound back portion and extension-lugs fromsaid back portion to engage said holding attachments, and mechanism toeffect the dropping of said leaves, substantially as specified.

6. In a street-car or station indicator, the combination of the pivotedreciprocating dropper-slideand its actuating mechanism, the hingedindicator-leaves, the replacer shaft and bail, the lever pivoted to theunder side of the car and engaging an incline or guide on the trackway,and means connecting said lever to and operating said shaft and bail,substantially as set forth.

7. In a street or station indicator for cars, the combination, withhinged indicator-leaves, of a reciprocating pivoted droppenslide, areplacer-bail, and automatic devices for operating the same and thehinged indicator-leaves, substantially as specified.

8. In-a street or station indicator for cars, the combination, Withhinged indicator-leaves and a pivoted reciprocating dropper-slide, of arack thrust-bar, rocking gear, and ratchet, an intermittently-revolvingcrank-disk and its holding and moving pawls, and mechanism for droppingor operating said leaves, substantially as specified.

9. A streetcar and station indicator comprising the pivotedreciprocating dropperslide and its actuating mechanism, a remov- MARKANTHONY. WVitnesses:

LINCOLN SONNTAG, FRED W. PIBTS.

